Lee Hall Reservoir
Newport News city County, Virginia390 acresView mapDirections
Clarity, phosphorus, and algae all sit in the cleanest band for this region.
↑ up from B at the last regrade
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- #1 of 1 in the county
- 33 ft max depth
Lee Hall Reservoir in Newport News city County, Virginia has a water quality grade of A (Excellent). Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 5.8 µg/L. Surface area: 390 acres.
- Clarity
- 4.8 ft
- Max depth
- ~33 ft est.
- Area
- 390 acres
- Type
- Mesotrophic
- Phosphorus
- 30 µg/L
- Chlorophyll-a
- 5.8 µg/L
- Trend
- ↓ Declining
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Watch Lee Hall Reservoir’s letter
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Lee Hall Reservoir is a 390-acre mesotrophic lake in Newport News city County, Virginia with an estimated average depth of about 33 feet. Water quality is graded A based on 2 sampling years through 2025. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2025-09-25. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
Swimming Safety
Grade onlyLow algae
Based on clarity and algae grades from past sampling — we do not hold live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
The A is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Lee Hall Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, metals (other than mercury), oxygen depletion (low DO), pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water Quality Grade: A (Excellent)
Murky, only visible to about 4.8 ft. Phosphorus 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 5.8 µg/L. TSI 52. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 4.8 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | 30 µg/L | Good |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 5.8 µg/L | Good |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 52 | Mesotrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~33 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~14 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 390 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Virginia has not published bathymetry for Lee Hall Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Fishing Lee Hall Reservoir
Water Quality Trend: ↓ Declining
Based on 5 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | → Stable | -0.002 m/yr | 5 |
| Phosphorus | → Stable | +0.5 µg/L/yr | 5 |
| Chlorophyll-a | ↓ Declining | +0.36 µg/L/yr | 5 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Lee Hall Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lee Hall Reservoir Dam, built primarily for water supply on the Warwick River; gravity-type dam, 24 ft tall and 1,420 ft long.
- Surface area
- 390 ac
- Normal storage
- 3,063 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 4,640 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 15.9 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- City of Newport News Waterworks Department;City of Newport News Waterworks Department;City of Newport News Waterworks Department
All listed purposes: Water Supply;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VA700001 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Lee Hall Reservoir is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit VAT-G11L_LHR01A08 · Official waterbody report
County Ranking
Ranked #1 of 1 lakes in Newport News city County
Nearby Lakes in Newport News city County
Frequently asked questions about Lee Hall Reservoir
Where is Lee Hall Reservoir?
- Lee Hall Reservoir is a lake in Newport News city County, Virginia. LakeQuality grades it A for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
What is the water quality grade for Lee Hall Reservoir?
- Lee Hall Reservoir in Newport News city County, Virginia has a water quality grade of A (Excellent). Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 5.8 µg/L. Surface area: 390 acres.
Is Lee Hall Reservoir safe to swim in?
- The A is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Lee Hall Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, metals (other than mercury), oxygen depletion (low DO), pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Lee Hall Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Lee Hall Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 33 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 390 acres.
Explore Lee Hall Reservoir across LakeQuality
More Virginia Lake Rankings
Other Grade A Lakes in Virginia
Mesotrophic Lakes in Virginia
Where this data comes from
292 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2013–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB292 samples · 2013–2025
Analytical methods
- Tyler, John. 1968. The secchi disk, Limnology and Oceanograpy, 13(1):1-6.
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
Grade thresholds from the EPA National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See how grades are calculated and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)